This former fashion model is making major waves in the interiors world

Axel Huynh likes to blur the line between fashion and interiors. The former model spent two decades working as an image consultant, developing runway scenographies for brands including Gucci and Burberry before embarking on a career in interior design. “Being immersed in the world of fine craftsmanship for so long helped me understand the importance of skilled artisanry and the transformative power of spaces,” he tells Business of Home.

Growing up in Paris, the Brooklyn-based designer was raised with an appreciation for design. His mom was a fashion designer and couturier who taught him the ABCs of pattern-making and sewing at an early age. “As a child, I often found myself sketching textile patterns and chair profiles while sitting with my mother,” says Huynh.

As a young adult, he was discovered by Jean Paul Gaultier and began modeling for the fashion designer throughout the late 1990s before he was hired as an in-house artistic director for the company. In 2001, he launched his own creative agency, Crazybaby!, helping big-name brands such as Elizabeth Arden and Fendi Casa craft everything from photo-shoot sets to major marketing campaigns. “These experiences not only deepened my understanding of craftsmanship, but also fueled my passion for creating enduring pieces that resonate with a sense of artistry and human connection,” he says.

At Art Basel Miami Beach 2016, Huynh was asked to create his first collection of furniture, exclusively for the Maison Montaigne gallery. This led to a chance meeting with an A-list actress that would ultimately change the entire trajectory of his career. “I met Hilary Swank, who resonated deeply with my work, and subsequently commissioned me to design the interiors of her Parisian apartment,” he explains. “This pivotal moment heralded a wave of significant media exposure, including a prominent feature in Architectural Digest—it was truly the starting point of everything.”

Inside Studio Gohard’s Spaceless Gallery–curated Brooklyn showroomGenevieve Garruppo

After spending the last few years collaborating on bespoke designs with tastemakers such as actress Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu of Emily in Paris and the Cannes Film Festival, Huynh was named the creative director of Studio Gohard—a New York design studio founded by 60-year old millwork and artisan craft firm Ateliers Gohard—in May of 2024. There, he works with a team of 150 skilled artisans to craft fashion-forward furnishings including a 22-foot-long wabi-sabi marquetry table for luxury watchmaker Richard Mille and a hand-carved precious-wood wall sculpture for the Burberry flagship in Ibiza. “We specialize in decorative painting, art glass, millwork and plasterwork,” he says. “Our goal is to create interiors that blend French artistry with contemporary refinement.”

A gilded five-screen panel and plaster wall panel by Studio GohardGenevieve Garruppo

All of Huynh’s designs start with a sketch that becomes a digital rendering and eventually a prototype. From there, he works alongside an array of technically trained artists to bring each piece to life, a process that can take several weeks and dozens of hands to complete. A recently unveiled five-screen panel, for instance, showcases an array of dexterous details, from gold-leaf accents to etched-plaster finishes. “This piece embodies Studio Gohard’s ethos of pushing artistic boundaries,” he says. “It invites viewers to explore beyond the surface, encouraging them to uncover the hidden beauty and stories that enrich our creations.”

Currently hard at work on an assortment of fresh designs that will soon be on display in Studio Gohard’s art-gallery-esque showroom in Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood, Huynh is excited for what the future holds. “For me, design and decoration are about emotion and feeling,” he says. “My mission is to strike the perfect balance between avant-garde and unostentatious elegance.”

If you want to learn more about Axel Huynh, visit Studio Gohard’s website or Instagram.